Chapter 516: Chapter 393: A Sudden Inspiration
Zhou Lan always made sense.
Originally, Zhou Yun had already planned to finish filming for another week before going home.
The production crew had planned to do so.
But Zhou Yun didn’t expect that after Director Xue Qin finished filming a monologue scene, Xue pulled her aside alone.
"Director, what do you mean by this?" Zhou Yun didn’t understand Xue Qin’s intention.
Xue Qin’s eyes shone as she looked at Zhou Yun, saying, "I have an idea."
"An idea?" Zhou Yun watched Xue Qin, unsure of what kind of idea she had.
Xue Qin said, "Last night, as I lay in bed, I suddenly thought, what if we take advantage of this hiatus to shoot another film? That way, we won’t have to stop working."
"Shoot another film?" Zhou Yun was shocked.
Xue Qin nodded and said, "Shoot another film. I’ve already thought it all out. We’ll shoot a story about a film crew that suddenly encounters a problem during filming and has to stop. Doing so, all the sets can be done right here on this location."
"Wait, Director, I didn’t quite catch that. You mean to write another script, to shoot another film?" Zhou Yun looked at Xue Qin in surprise, "But what about the script?"
"The script can be written as we shoot. I’ve already written two pages," Xue Qin said earnestly, "Take a look."
She took out two printed pages of the script.
In fact, it didn’t count as a script, there was basically no dialogue, just a synopsis.
Zhou Yun found it absurd, but Xue Qin’s expectant and serious gaze made it hard for Zhou Yun to directly say she found it unreliable, without reading it.
She had no choice but to pick up the two pages of the script and read on.
"After her divorce, she finally got the chance to direct a film again. Just as she was ready to make a big splash, the investor suddenly withdrew funding. Halfway through the shoot, there was no way to continue. The actors were preparing to leave one by one, and the crew members were also ready to leave one by one. The actress was the only one willing to support her continuing to film. She had to do everything she could to try to keep everyone from leaving and shoot the film..."
"The actor’s company had already arranged another film for him and he had to leave. To keep him, she decided to communicate with him one last time, so she went to knock on his door late at night. Unexpectedly, the actor’s assistant saw her and mistook their relationship as improper, informally alerting the actor’s girlfriend. The actor’s girlfriend rushed over overnight and humiliated and scolded her in front of the entire crew..."
"The actress was the actor’s ex-girlfriend, who didn’t like him and his girlfriend in the first place. So she stood up to defend her and exposed the girlfriend’s past as a mistress in front of everyone. The girlfriend, furious, got into a fight with the actress. She tried to break up the fight but was accidentally injured and hospitalized. The actress came to find Zhou Yun, persuading her to sue the actor’s girlfriend. The actor had to agree to continue with the shoot to cover up the incident, but the actress did not want things to go that far, threatening Zhou Yun that if she didn’t sue, she would leave the crew..."
The two pages were written up to this point.
Some parts had proper dialogue, while others were just brief synopses.
After reading, Zhou Yun felt it was "so damn melodramatic," yet, inexplicably compelling; she wanted to know if this female director managed to finish the film.
Xue Qin was still looking at her.
"What do you think?" she asked, "Are you interested?"
"Um... does Sister Luo Qi know about this?" Zhou Yun asked.
Xue Qin shook her head, "I haven’t told her yet. If you’re not willing to act, this film definitely can’t get off the ground."
"Huh?"
"One month of downtime, I don’t want anyone from the crew to leave; who knows how many will return after a month," Xue Qin said, "I want to keep everyone, so I must shoot a new film within this month. That way, everyone can keep working and stay without delay."
"Director, I, I admit your story is very appealing to me, but are you sure we can finish shooting in one month?" Zhou Yun asked.
Xue Qin said, "I believe in myself."
"Who will play the male lead, the female lead, and the actor’s girlfriend in this script?" Zhou Yun asked.
Xue Qin said, "Mr. You Jiang can play the male lead, and Ms. Zeng Lili can play the female lead. As for the actor’s girlfriend, I haven’t decided yet, but we will definitely find someone suitable."
You Jiang and Zeng Lili were well-known actors specially invited for "Falling Leaves," both in their forties. They had been famous and had recognition, but were no longer in the prime of their careers and were mainly playing supporting roles in various films now.
Zhou Yun asked, "Have you talked to them? Are they willing to act?"
"This idea, so far, I’ve only told you. If you’re willing, I’ll go talk to them."
"Shooting an extra film, where’s the money coming from?" Zhou Yun asked.
"There’s still some money in the crew’s account from ’Falling Leaves’ that hasn’t been used up. If the crew can operate normally and continue filming, the subsequent payments will also be disbursed on schedule," said Xue Qin.
"Your idea is really crazy," Zhou Yun hand-covered her forehead.
Xue Qin looked at her spiritedly, saying, "But you also think the idea is good, right? Last night in bed, as soon as this story popped into my head, I was so excited I couldn’t sleep."
"This story is completely different from ’Falling Leaves.’ ’Falling Leaves’ is so artistic, focusing on personal emotions, while this story has so much melodrama and twists and turns," Zhou Yun said, "I thought you would never like stories like this."
"Why wouldn’t I like it? Stories are just a medium, after all. Speaking of melodrama, aren’t Pedro Almodovar’s films melodramatic?" Xue Qin said, "But no one can deny that his films are outstanding."
Zhou Yun realized that today she truly understood another side of Xue Qin in private.
She was a bit excited, even neurotic, talking about her own ideas with soaring confidence.
Yet, even though this story was completely different from "Falling Leaves," there was no denying that the tension in the story was very appealing to Zhou Yun.
"You go tell Sister Luo Qi, and I’ll talk to my agent. As long as this project can go ahead normally, as you envision, I’m willing to act," Zhou Yun said. "But, Director Xue, I must clarify one thing: I have other commitments signed for later, and if you can’t finish on time, I can’t continue to stay here with you. I must leave."
Xue Qin raised her chin proudly and said, "Twenty days, that’ll be enough."